Cellular wireless is an increasingly popular means of personal communication in the modern world. People are using cellular wireless networks for the exchange of voice and data over cellular telephones, Personal Digital Assistants (“PDAs”), cellular telephone modems, and other devices. In principle, a user can seek information over the Internet or call anyone over a Public Switched Telephone Network (“PSTN”) from any place inside the coverage area of the cellular wireless network.
An important feature of contemporary cellular wireless networks is an ability to locate the geographical position of a mobile station. Such a feature was developed to assist emergency services in locating a mobile station. For example, in the United States, the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”) has mandated the implementation of “Enhanced 911” (“E911”) services.
The FCC mandates that E911 services may be introduced in two phases. In the first phase, if a mobile station invokes the service, the cellular wireless network determines in which cell the mobile station is located. The cellular wireless network also responds by blocking all incoming calls to that mobile station so that the emergency services have a clear connection to the mobile station. But a cell, or sector within the cell, may cover a large geographic area. Thus the position information provided to the emergency services in the first phase may not be sufficiently precise to pinpoint the position of the mobile station. Effective response from the emergency services may require a determination of position to within fifty meters or less.
The second phase of the E911 service requires that the cellular wireless network have the ability to locate the mobile station to within fifty meters. A description of the second phase of E911 may be found in Telecommunications Industries Association (“TIA”) standard, “TR-45 Enhanced Wireless J-STD-036 911 Phase 2,” dated July 2000, which is incorporated herein by reference. The cellular wireless network includes additional position determining equipment in order to achieve such an accuracy, or the mobile station incorporates global positioning system (“GPS”) components and relays its position to the emergency services. The emergency services may then obtain an accurate latitude and longitude of the mobile station to assist them in providing assistance to the operator of the mobile station.
Mandating that the cellular wireless network and the mobile station have the above position capabilities has a consequence for commerce. The ability to locate the mobile station may allow providers in the vicinity to provide commercial services and information to the operator of the mobile station through the cellular wireless network. Thus the operator of the mobile station may inquire about what services are offered in his vicinity, and the cellular wireless network will provide such information to the operator. The operator might then have the option of establishing a connection with any chosen provider and receiving the services offered by the provider.
Having such location-based services may allow a mobile station's operator to inquire about services in his vicinity. For example, the Personal Communications Service (“PCS”) provided by Sprint Spectrum, LP of Kansas City, Mo., allows the operator to roam anywhere in the United States that is within the coverage of the Sprint PCS service. Thus, if the operator is away from his home area, he may activate a mini-browser on his mobile station and request information about food, gas, lodging, entertainment, hospitals, traffic warnings, weather, etc. in his vicinity.
It is therefore desirable to configure a wireless cellular network to provide location based services to a mobile station such that providers may offer services, through the wireless cellular network, to mobile stations within their vicinity.